Expenditure during visits 6.16
Almost a quarter of visits to the natural environment involved expenditure (24 per cent). Expenditure was most likely to be incurred for food and drink which occurred on 19 per cent of all visits (Figure 6-5). Spending on other categories, such as car parking and fuel was restricted to a very small proportion of visits5. This profile of expenditure is similar to that recorded in the 2009/10 survey. 74 72
No expenditure 19 20
Food and drink Car parking
5 4
Petrol/diesel
4 4
2010/11 2009/10
3 3
Admission fees Gifts/souvenirs
2 2
Bus/train/ferry fares
2 2 0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
Percentage of visits
Figure 6-5 Items purchased during visits to the natural environment (%) Q15 During this visit did you personally spend any money on any of the items listed on the screen? Base: Random visit, monthly questions (2009/10 N=4,755; 2010/11 N= 3,973) Note: Sum of totals is more than 100% as visits could involve expenditure on more than one item. No expenditure category includes 3% of don’t know responses.
6.17
For every ÂŁ1 spent on a visit to the natural environment, 53 pence was spent on food and drink with admission fees accounting for 15 pence (Figure 6-6).
5
Respondents were asked about any expenditure incurred during their visit. Therefore, any money spent for the visit but not actually during it (for example, purchasing petrol the day before in preparation for the visit) was not included. However money spent during the visit on fuel which continued to be used after the visit was recorded.
Monitor of Engagement with the Natural Environment: Annual Report
43